Mirrored Fate
by Beta117
Summary: The chosen king. Chosen to die for his world. He accepted his role, unhappily and bitterly as many would suspect. But as he sat on his throne dying, he was tossed into a world much like his own but distinctly different. Watch as he finds himself reliving events that are ghostly similar to his own journey to ascension.
1. chapter 1

Silence...

The silence was deafening. I hated it. It reminded me of how alone I was. Sitting on this throne slowly losing consciousness. The silence left me alone with only my thoughts to keep me company. Thoughts that I wish would leave me.

After everything that's happened to me I... I suppose it's no surprise that I would wish for this. After everyone that gave their lives.

'And all for my sake.' I think. I feel my eyes getting heavy. Every blink has the promise of sleep. I'm not sure why, but I don't truly resist. I let my eyes stay closed as I lean against my hand. I open my eyes once more only slightly as I look across the throne room at the corpse of Arden.

I wished nothing more than to make him suffer. Everything that happened to me and my kingdom was by his design. He even corrupted the crystal my family was sworn to protect. Using it as a catalyst for the starscourge. All for his revenge against etro for cursing him to immortality. Yet I never even got to touch him with my blade. I was already far to weak after banishing the darkness to fight. Instead I The only thing I could do, gave him exactly what he wanted. Freeing his soul with the last of my light.

My mind feels like it's rolling before consciousness finally leaves me. I close my eyes for the last time. I no longer have any awareness of what I'm feeling. My senses no longer of use. Smell, taste, sound, touch... wait.

'Why do I feel wet?' My head was still rolling and my senses a mess, but my clothes definitely feel wet. And I might be laying on the ground. The second thing that returns to me is the sound. It sounds like a heavy downpour. Now that I put it together, I can feel rain hitting me as I lay on the ground. As I lay there, my strength surprising me by slowly returning, I realized that I had to be still alive somehow. It feels all too real for this possibly be the afterlife. At least I assume. I continue to lay there until a large rain drop plops me in the eye.

I rub my eye before slowly sit up using my hands to support me. When I finally open my eyes I'm confused by what I see. The first thing I notice was the wide open space I was in. But the second thing I noticed is what caught my eye. At the edge of the open space were many, many swords all planted into the ground. As I looked around I saw that the swords outlined the area all the way around. Along the ring were pillars as well.

I push myself up off the ground before toppling back over. I groaned in annoyance before trying again. This time slowly I push up from my laying position and succeed in standing. Standing being a generous word as it feels like the slightest breeze can push me over.

After gathering myself I begin walking slowly towards the swords nearest to me. My strength begins returning quicker now. I reach the swords and study them. They all look relatively different just with slight similarities. I look up the pillars and a realization strikes me. 'Those aren't pillars, they are... swords?' I bring my attention back to the smaller swords.

I reach out for the nearest one with my magic in an attempt to add it to my Arsenal but it reacts in a manner that I wasn't expecting. Rather than turning into a foggy crystal white before disappearing, it turns an sharp crystal blue before returning back to is original state. 'What was that?' I question. 'That felt like light.' I realize. I reach deep into myself but find the power of light I once had is gone. My strength and magic may be returning, but the light is gone.

'But this sword. What is this?' I question. I have countless weapons in my Arsenal collected throughout my journey, but none hold any power like what I just felt. I study it. It looks like a normal short sword but it's completely silver, and both sides of its blade is serrated. I walk forward before grabbing the blade by the hilt.

The blade flashes a brilliant blue. I'm knocked back by some invisible force barely managing to keep myself from falling down again.

The blade floats in the air, I could see a ghostly figure holding it with both hands, his eyes peering into my soul, searching for something. It reminded me of the dead people I started seeing after my near death experience. Finding what he was looking for, he released the blade from his hands before it flew at me and disappeared into my chest.

Something tells me that it wasn't supposed to be as painful as it was. This time I was in fact knocked to the ground, writhing in agony for what seemed like hours. When the pain finally disappeared I was left disoriented but I could feel the power of light return to me, the blade attached to my soul a beacon inside of me.

' _I shall allow you to wield my glave. My Kingly Heir you may not be, but you will need this power none the less._ ' I heard from what felt like everywhere at once. 'Great, voices in my head again.' I think sarcastically. As I lay there recuperating, the rain slowly begins to die down. When It finally stops I decide to rise to my feet.

With some hesitation I summon the blade. The blade somewhat hurts to hold but I can feel the power behind it. I let it disappear before looking at the rest of the weapons throughout the area. "Yeah, not worth doing that again." I say aloud to myself. I see a path that cuts between the swords and being following it.

It leads me to a rocky shore, and only then do I realize I'm on a small island. I see the mainland not to far from here. I disappeared from where I was standing, the only thing remaining was some floating crystals before they too disappeared.

I Instantly reappeared on a rock some distance from the spot I was just standing. I travel like this for some time, not because I had to do it many times but because I had to spend time recuperating between each warp. I warp from rock to rock protruding from the water until finally, I reach the shore. Nearby I see what looks like a small boat dock and a resort. I begin walking along the sandy shore, the ground still wet from the rain, causing my boots to sink with every step.

Upon reaching the docks I walk up to a vender nearby who clearly sells weapons. "Hey, you looking to buy or sell?" He asks me. It's then that I realize that I actually don't have any money.

'I'll fix that later.' I think to myself before I ask him, "Actually I was wondering if you could tell me where I was?"

"Well you are in Galdin Quay." He tells me. 'Lucis then?' I think to myself. My confusion must have shown on my face as I looked around. "Guess you've never been here before?" He asks.

"Well actually I have, although it looks different than I remember." I answer honestly. I continue noting the differences. The resort looked new but the hill looked similar to how I remembered it. I turn back to the man before thanking him and walking towards the resort itself. I walk on the long dock before finally reaching the resort.

"Welcome to Galdin Quay." A server says and I thank him as I walk past him, towards the desk. Upon reaching the desk I grab the attention of the server behind the counter.

Upon noticing me she turns around. "Oh hello!" She says enthusiastically. "What can I do for you?" She asks..

"Hi. I seem to have misplaced my money and I was wondering if you have any hunts available in the area?" I ask. She looks towards a clipboard she has on the desk before turning back to me.

"I'm sorry, all of our hunts have been turned in already." She tells me. "If I remember correctly, they were completed by 4 young men all wearing black clothes much like yourself." She said sounding sincerely sorry for my situation. "If there's anything else I can do for you, just let me know." She tells me before turning back to the grill.

"Great." I sarcastically say aloud. "No money and no work."

"Need me to pull you out of a pinch again?" A man says behind me. I turn around and see a man with white/silver spiked up hair. He was wearing a light gray waistcoat under a dark blazer with black lapels along with black jeans.

When his eyes meet mine he seem slightly taken back. "Whoa. What happened to your ey-" he starts to say before I cut him off.

"Do I know you?" I ask somewhat rudely but straight to the point. While I'm not exactly in a rush I'm also not willing to waste daylight. The surprise of his face seems to disappear as he begins studying me for several seconds.

"I guess not, your whole demeanor is different than his too. But enough about that, I hear you are in need of money and I got a job that might need a fighters blade, if you understand what I'm saying." He casually explains.

"You mean to say its potentially dangerous." I state rather than ask. His eyes light up when I don't seem put off by that fact.

"Precisely." He says before begin to explain. "You see I am in need of a rare gemstone that happens to be surrounded by a bunch of Rubyshears. If you can get me the gems I will handsomely pay you depending on how much you can bring me. I'll even pay for a night here as a reward."

I contemplate it for several seconds before looking towards the sun. 'Almost 6 o'clock. I've got time.' I think to myself. "Sure. Just tell me where to find it." I say to him.

"Alright! Straight to it and no questions asked. Your my kinda guy." He says enthusiastically. "Now let me see your map." He says as he pulls out a pen.

"I don't have one." I tell him. He looks at me strangely before pulling one out of his back pocket.

"Alright I let you borrow mine, and if you do this for me, it's yours to keep." He tells me. He circles the spot on it and hands it to me. "Good luck." He tells me before walking off. I walk off back to the shore before looking at them map. I notice that it looks... off somehow. The names of the places are mostly the same as I remember but the map itself looks unfamiliar.

'Insomnia too.' I notice. 'I suppose tomorrow I should head there in search for answers.' I think to myself. I see the area at the bottom circled by... the man. I never did get his name I realize. I beginning moving along the shore for about half an hour before seeing them.

'Rubyshears. About 10 of them.' I count. Their red shell showed the reasoning behind their name. I pick up the pace into a jog before breaking into a full sprint. They turn to me noticing my presence.

The nearest one charges me and pulls back one of its claws for a swipe. It never gets the chance as a sword materializes in my hand before becoming lodged in its head. My ultima sword disappears as I jump over the crab as it falls down dead.

I summon the sword into my hand before throwing it at the next crab. I warp to the sword pushing the blade into its head much like the other one. As it falls down dead I shuffle to the side as a claw strikes the ground where I once stood. I summon a large battle axe gripped with both my hands on it before spinning 180 degrees while swinging it.

The axe slams into the side of the crab breaking through its shell like paper. I let the axe disappears as I summon a dagger. I throw it at another nearby crab. The blade loges itself in the crabs shell but not enough to kill it. I warp to it flipping and kicking the handle of the blade forcing it the rest of the way into its shell killing it.

A crab jumps through the air and was going to crash into me, if it wasn't for the shield that materialized mid air stopping it in its tracks. I summon a spear and throw it at the crab as it fell to the ground.

I charge at the crab, the shield dematerializing and reappearing on my arm. I slam the shield into the crab breaking it's shell and crushing it's insides from the force.

Another crab charges at me and I put the shield up in defense. I hold my ground at it slams into me and attempts to grab me with its claws. I let go of the shield but it doesn't move from the spot as if held up but some invisible force. A greatsword appears in my hand and the shield disappeareds. The crab falls forward straight into my swung sword. The crab gets knocked back dead from the force.

I disappeared from the spot as another crab lands where I was standing. Reappearing above it, I summon two tridents and bring them down lodging themselves deep into the shell of the crab killing it.

Another crab jumps at me from where I stood on its dead ally. I roll backwards off of the dead crab and the other one sails over me. Pointing my hand out towards the trident, an invisible force once again takes hold of my weapons. They dislodge themselves before flying towards the crab as I flick my arm towards it. The two spears kill the crab instantly before disappearing.

I see the last two crabs watching nearby. And I summon an ice sword. Throwing it at one of the crabs, it stabs into the side of it, freezing the crab in place with better results than expected. 'Weak to ice. Should have guessed.' I note internally

The other crab charges me before stopping short and beings taking swings at me that I dodge with a simple side steps and turns. When it goes to attack with both claws I counter, summoning a mace that I use to shatter it's entire shell in one powerful swing. I drag the mace with me to the frozen crab before bringing in down in powerful swing killing the last crab.

My sword and mace dematerialize as I begin walking towards a nearby rock that looks to have red gems showing on its sides. I Break off all the pieces on the exterior but it's not nearly as much as I'd like.

I summon my mace again and and with one strong swing slam it into the rock, breaking into into large pieces. "Much better." I say aloud to myself. I find much larger clumps of the red stone. After collecting a sizable amount I head back to the resort, reaching it just as the sun went down.

I find the man sitting on a bench looking at something on his phone. When I dropped the pile of stones at his feet he looked at me with awe on his face. "Wow. I'm impressed. I thought you might be insane when you went out there just as it was getting dark. But looks like you made it back and with more than I expected." He tells me.

"And my payment?" I ask. He looks at the rocks before picking one up and analyzing it. He puts it down before handing me a hotel key and a bag of Gil.

"There's your room as promised and 5000 Gil. I will have to measure how much you got here before being able to give you proper payment. I honestly didn't expect you to get this much but I'm not the kinda guy to rip someone off. You go get yourself some good rest and I will bring you the rest of your money in the morning." He tells me as he begins examining the stones one by one.

When I get to the hotel room I peal off my clothes, throwing them into the washer/dryer, before falling into a deep slumber.

 ** _Mirrored_** **_Fate_**

" _To crown the King of Light, is the calling of the crystal." A voice of a young girl said. I was in a room that seemed familiar. On the wall above a bed was a painting of a young boy dressed in black and a young girl dressed in white playing with two dogs. I saw what looked like a wedding dress to my right as I walked to the window of the room. "Only the true king anointed by the Crystal can purge our star of it scourge." The voice said as I looked out upon what looked like violent storm clouds._

 _I was driving a car as imperial ships shot at me. I ignored them as I continued driving. As I was driving something caught my eye and it was a white dog. spent a second too long staring at it as when I looked back to the road I realized I was about to crash. I overcorrected sending the car in a roll down the road throwing me into the air._

 _The young girl, now all grown up stumbled back into a rock, holding a trident. "Noctis!" She yelled out. She ducked down under the swing of a sword as it lodged itself into a the rock. She swung her trident but it was blocked by the same sword before she was struck in the face by a fist._

"Luna!" I yelled as I shot up from inside my sleeping bag. I'm covered in sweat and my breathing heavy. I barely register someone calling if I was alright from outside. The tent flap opens and I see a familiar face and blond hair show in the opening.

"Noct? Buddy, ...You alright?" He asks me. I quickly look around and remember where I am.

"Um- yeah. Just a dream." I tell him. But he just continues to stare at me worriedly.

"I'm fine Promto. I swear." I say in an attempt to reassure him.

"Told you we shouldn't have let him sleep so long. King of Insomnia has quite the opposite of Insomnia." I hear the deep voice of Gladiolus joke from outside.

"Well I thought he could use it after what we've been through recently. Besides, we are supposed to meet up with Cor later to attack the barricade so he will need his strength." I hear my trusted advisor Ignis explain.

I huff as I start putting my clothes on. "Will you stop talking about me like I'm not here?" I pleaded jokingly.

Gladiolus laugh before replying, "Is that a request or is that a royal order?" He asks

I feel myself smile. My dream all but forgotten. "Royal order." I replied before climbing out of the tent.

"Then we shall make it so." Ignis said while still continuing to work on breakfast.

"Sound like an abuse of powers to me." Promoto said as he plopped down into one of the camp chairs.

The three of them chuckle at my expense. Despite that the smile never leaves my face. I stand up and stretch as I get the last of the sleep out of me. "Well, Good morning fellas."

 ** _Mirrored Fate_**

huff huff* My heavy breathing and the sound of my boots hitting the ground are the only sounds that I can register as I walk the long expanse through the Desert to insomnia. Never have I cursed my love for the color black more than now.

My jacket was hanging over my shoulder but I definitely wasn't going to take off my shirt. I began walking around 6 after some breakfast and getting my money, an extra 8000 Gil from... "Damit. I forgot to ask his name again." I say aloud.

That was 4 hours ago. But as I walk this long road from the resort to the closest outpost on the map I must admit, I felt lonely.

Throughout my entire journey, start to finish I was never alone like I was now. I always had at least one of my friends with me for company. And while all we would probably be doing at the moment is bickering, I would still prefer it over this. I would even take a strangers company over having the Regalia at this point.

"What am I even going to do when I get to insomnia? What am I looking for?" I ask aloud. Of course I didn't expect an answer from anyone.

I spent another two hours walking before finally reaching The Longwythe rest area. Again it looked different from what I remember, but with the sun being at its peak at this point I didn't spend much time looking around before heading into the Crows Diner.

I ordered a large drink and a meal. But I wasn't just sitting there eating. I was also listening. "Do you think it's true?" I hear a man ask another. The man snorts.

"Of course not. It's just imperial propaganda. Because from what I heard that the Prince was seen in Galdin Quay during the attack." He said.

'How would that news beat me here?' I thought to myself. But more importantly. 'What attack does he speak of? Insomnia?'

I was going to continue listening but... I noticed I felt something strange. I could feel it on the tip of my mind and soul. Some familiar feeling was beginning to wash over me. It continued to grow before finally peaking. I quickly realized that it was the power of light. I looked around but I saw nothing out of the ordinary. After several minutes I felt the feeling beginning to weaken. I had to investigate now or I would never figure out what it was.

I left a tip on the counter and walked out of the dinner. As I looked around I searched for anything out of the ordinary but came up empty. The feeling continued to get weaker when I was able to figure out the direction it was disappearing to. I could feel it to the West. I looked out that way but couldn't see anything.

I pulled out my map to see where the road leads. 'Away from Insomnia.' I thought to myself. I continued contemplating the best course of action, but as I felt the light slowly but surely getting smaller, I came to a decision.

I began a strong jog down the road hoping to catch up to whatever it was giving me this feeling.

Mirrored Fate

As I walked through the recently opened barricade I came to a stop. I saw my dear companion Umbra running towards me with a message from Noctis. Along with him was Pryna all the way from home. Despite everything that's happened I couldn't help but feel exited to see his reply.

I ran forward to meet them. The clicking of my heals coming to a stop when they reach me. I rub them affectionately before grabbing the book umbra carries. I look at it sadly before opening it.

"Finally going to see you after all these years." Was written in Noct's handwriting.

I found myself fighting tears. We wouldn't be able to see each other. The covenants would probably kill me before we could meet. I could only hope our paths cross before that point. I noticed I wasn't alone. I looked up to see Gentiana standing behind them. I stood, before showing her the Ring I held in my safekeeping. She nodded to me. I close my hand before putting the ring away.

Suddenly her brows scrunch as if she was confused by something, before she opens her eyes. A smile appears on her face. "It appears that fate has favored your wishes." she says. It's only as she suddenly disappears that I realize she not looking at me but past me.

I hear boots hitting the ground behind me. I quickly turn my head and who I see practically makes my heart burst from my chest. He comes to a quick stop just a few feet away.

"Noctis?!" I ask, desperate for this to be real. His face seems confused but he gives me a hesitant nod and it's all the confirmation I need. I run towards him, tears in my eyes. When I reach him I pull him into a hug. I stand there letting the tears fall freely onto his shoulder as I hold him as if he would disappear.

After several moments he hesitantly wraps his arms around me pulling me into a hug. We stand there for several moments, his arm rubbing my back comfortingly.

I bring some space between us before reaching into my pocket and pulling out the Ring Of Lucii. "Your Father, before he passed, tasked me with getting the Ring to you." I keep my eyes on the Ring as he doesn't move for a painstakingly long time.

"So my father has passed?" He asks in an almost monotone voice. I simply nod. I feel one of his hands leave my back before he grabs the Ring. He finches as he picks it up. I had a similar feeling of pain shoot through me when I received it. He turns in his around gloved hand, examining for several long moments before putting it in his pocket. "Thank you." He say to me.

"I got your message." I tell him excitedly. I couldn't shake the giddiness I felt. "I guess we got to see each other even sooner than ether of us expected." I say.

He seems to pause, Before saying something that made me freeze. "I'm sorry, but I don't know what it is you talking about."

I looked up at him. "The message that umbra deli-" It felt like my heart stopped. His face was the same but definitely different, his hair was too dark, and his eyes. His Blood Red eyes were a stark contrast to the Crystal Blue that I was expecting.

Fear grabbed hold of every fiber of my being.

'This isn't Noctis.'

Sensing my fear Pryna and Umbra begin growling at the man from behind me.

'This isn't Noctis.'

I feel a strong breeze and with it an icy chill that drops the temperature to the point I can see his breathing.

'This isn't Noctis... and I just gave him the Ring.'

He begins to say something "What's wr-?" But I don't let him finish as I finally move. I knee him in the groin. His other hand falls off me, and I quickly begin backing away from the imposter.

"Hey wait! I d-" he starts but no sooner does Umbra jump at him in an attempt to protect me from him. A shield appears in a similar but distinctly different Fashion than I've seen before. Umbra slams into the shield with force that no normal dog could have. The shield bends but doesn't break. He throws the shield and the dog behind him before turning and dodging Prynas similar strike.

The dogs both back off as a strong wind begins circling around him the temperature dropping even more so then before. I see frost begin forming on him and soon that frost begins to turn to full blown ice. He looks around his eyes analyzing the situation. "The Glacian?" He asks.

He brings his hands together and they suddenly start glowing red before the glow disappears. He points his open palms outward with great difficulty as the ice was beginning to freeze him in place.

"Firaga!"

Suddenly a blast of fire that near completely cancelled out the cold swept the area. Instantly melting the ice. But as soon as it was gone the wind picked up again. He looked around wildly attempting a plan before his eyes landed on me. "They protect her?" He whispers. He stares at me as frost once again begins forming on his clothes. I see his eyes harden for what he prepares to do.

"Then that means..." he points an open hand towards me, his red eyes began to glow an even darker red. Suddenly I was surrounded by many different weapons all pointed at me.

"Shiva!!! Stop this or her blood will be on your hands!!!" He yells out. The wind instantly came to a stop. Everything seemed to freeze in place. The only movements were our breathing.

I looked to the left and saw Gentiana standing a short distance away from me and the swords.

"You are not in control of this situation. All it would take for me to freeze you to death would be a touch of my finger." She says to him.

"Gentiana? Your the Glacian?!" I ask the surprise clear in my voice. 'Later.' I hear her voice in my head.

He flexs his fingers and suddenly all the blades have moved closer and are now pushing against my skin. Some even breaking through, little bits of red blood showing on my white clothes. "And all it would take is for me to flex mine." His voice says darkly.

"What is it you want?" I finally ask.

He looks back to me. "Simple." His fingers relaxed and the glow of his eyes vanished. The weapons disappeared from around me. I released a breath I didn't know I was holding. "I wish to talk. I don't mean any harm." He explains.

I catch my breath before stealing myself. "If that is true, then give me back the Ring." I tell him.

His eyes show some surprise but were glued on me as he reached into his pocket and pulled out the Ring. "The whispers in my head we're getting annoying anyway." He tell me before he casually flicks the Ring to me as if it was just a piece of jewelry.

'He can hear the voices of the kings? That means he is truly a Caelum.' I think to myself. But the only Caelums left are Noctis and...

"Are you... the Accursed?" I ask, making sure to show no fear in my voice.

"He is not." Gentiana answers for him. I look to her before back to him.

"Then who are you?" I finally ask.

"Well you already seem to know my name but I will tell you anyway. I am Noctis Lucis Caelum. King of Lucis." He answers somewhat arrogantly. "Now, if you would be so kind as to give your name?"

"Lunafreya Nox Fleuret. Oracle Tenebrae." I answered. "Nox Fleuret?" He asks quickly. I simply nod my head.

"You wouldn't happen to have a sister named Stella would you?" He asks somewhat hopeful. I simply shake my head. He sighes before asking another question. "What about a brother named Ravus?" He asks.

"Yes actually." I tell him. He rolls his eyes before muttering some curse under his breath. "Your not Noctis." I say. He looks back at me.

"Noctis and I have know each other sense we were children. And while we haven't seen each other since then, we've kept in contact over the years." I explain. He crosses his arms and closes his eyes thinking.

Several ghostly weapons started forming around him. I could see soul crystals floating in the air around him. "I assure you, I'm who I say I am." He tells me. The weapons disappear. "But I do find it disturbing to know that there's another me running around." He told me honestly.

"... but, I don't know how I got here and you seem like the best chance I have at finding answers." He said somberly. My eyes widen in surprise at what he was implying. "So if you would let me, I would like to accompany you lady Oracle." He told me.

I look at Gentiana. From her passive posture I can tell she expects me to make this decision. I turn back to him. "Alright then. I will allow you to accompany me as I forge the covenants."


	2. Chapter 2

We haven't actually said much to each other after we began traveling together. Luna is now wearing my jacket because of the blood that was on her clothes. I did apologize for that, but she seemed not truly bothered by it.

'Strong, independent and doesn't mind getting into a fight. I'd say the other me has his work cut out for him.' I think jokingly. I look at the journal that she has been looking at for the past 30 minutes of our journey. She mentioned that her and this worlds Noctis kept in contact even though she was behind enemy lines and if I'm correct then that journal was how they did so.

She seemed quite upset when she noticed it's cover was slightly burnt from my firaga earlier. That... I refused to apologize for. Gentiana was very likely going to freeze me to death before I could even explain myself. But she seemed to be stumped as what to wright back.

"What's the problem?" I ask. Her head turns towards me. "I'm sure he's desperate to know your okay." I said truly curious.

"Well... I'm wondering if I should mention you." She answers honestly before continuing "You do seem to be a very important part of this now but we usually like to keep our responses short and intimate." She explains.

I let mischievous smile show on my face. "Ahh. So you are romanced with him. I was wondering if that had stayed the same between our worlds." I tell her. Surprise appears on her face.

"So does that mean this Stella woman and you were romantically involved?" She asks me. I give her a small nod.

"With us it was more like we were two sides to the same coin, we seemed to just fit together." I say before my smile spreads even more. "And once we were no longer fighting against each other things got carnal real quick." I explain. Her cheeks show a small blush and she turns back to her book.

"That's not very appropriate." She says clearly embarrassed. I give a loud chuckle at her expense.

"Just tell him you have a powerful and handsome guardian watching over you." I say jokingly but quickly let the smile fall from my face. "I'm sure he's worried sick." I tell her honestly.

I turn back to look at the path. She seems to consider something for several more moments before jotting something down. "Umbra." She calls and the dark colored dog jogs over to her. She put the book in his bag before patting him on the side. He sniffs around for a little bit before taking off in a direction north of us.

"Did you mention me?" I ask honestly curious.

"I simply said I had a guardian, without the powerful or handsome part. He has enough problems with confidence as it is." She explains.

I let out a snort and she gives me a sideways glare when I say, "Doesn't sound very kingly if he has problems with self esteem."

She seemed to be insulted by my words. "Noctis will succeed when the time comes." She tells me defensively.

I can't help the dark smirk that appears on my face. "Oh Yeah? Well I agree." I tell her, my head turning to face hers. "But how do you think he will do it?" I ask her. Her face shows her confusion towards my question. "After all, their are so many wonderful ways for one to commit suicide."

Her face contorts to one of hurt as if I had physically struck her. She turns away.

"As I thought. The gods of this world are just at self righteous and arrogant as in mine." I say. I fold my arms behind may head as we continue walking. "Well, he's had plenty of time to get over it." I assure her.

It takes me several seconds to realize she is no longer walking next to me. I turn around to find her staring down at her feet to moving. "You speak of it so casually, yet none of us could bring ourselves to tell him his fate." She says quietly.

My hands fall from the back of my head as I realized what she was telling me. "You mean to tell me he doesn't know?" I ask her.

She gives me a small nod before replying. "He just seemed so happy and innocent. I couldn't bring myself to say it. And his father wanted nothing but happiness for him. We just couldn't." She explained.

I thought back. When I was told my fate I became bitter. At the crystal, my father, the whole world, but the gods especially. For the longest time I felt that I was owed something for what was expected of me. Whatever it was I don't think I got it. Eventually the bitterness disappeared. What I was after was cold, uncaring. Some would even say dark. Funny considering I was the world's 'light.' But before that I was carefree, kind and happy. If I was never told that fateful day I might still be that way.

I begin walking towards her. "I can understand." I say to her as I put my hand on her shoulder. She looks up at me with a blank face but her eyes showed a plea for some form of reassurance. "I didn't exactly change for the better when I found out, but still he deserves to know." I tell her. She gives me a hesitant nod and I let my hand fall from her shoulder. I look around and noticed the sun was starting to go down.

"Come on, we are almost at Cauthess. We don't want to get caught out in the open at night." I tell her as I begin walking again. A few seconds later I hear her heels hitting the ground behind me as she catches up.

"Tomorrow I need to get to the meteor and awaken the Titan so that I may forge a covenant with him." She explains to me. 'Oh. Right. Oracle.' I think to myself.

"Is there any complications about that I should know?" I ask knowing that there always is something when it come to this stuff.

"The only entrance has a blockade of imperial troops, and while I'm sure we could take them no problem, we don't want them to know what we are doing until we are already leaving." She explains to me. My annoyance showing more and more as she explains.

"So that means if the soldiers at the blockade disappear then it's a bust?" I ask for my own clarification. She nods to me.

"Well too bad we can't fly." I say with annoyance in my voice. She looks at me strangely.

"Are you implying that you can fly?" She asks me with slight disbelief in her tone.

I let a mischievous smile appear on my face. "If you want the technical answer then yes. But if you want the real answer, then no. I can't fly. Especially with someone else." I explain to her.

She looks at me quizzically as if expecting me to continue. "Are you going to tell me how?" She asks.

"If it becomes relevant... maybe." I tell her. Her face shows her annoyance at my lack of context to my supposed "flying."

When we arrived at the town the sun had just about gone down. The first thing I noticed is that there was no lodgings to rent. Luna points it out as well. "We have no place to sleep for the night. How much money do you have? We can probably buy a tent and some sleeping bags from that vendor." She says to me as she points to a small outdoor store.

'Like hell im sleeping in a tent.' I think to myself. I look to her and start forming a plan. "Let me handle the sleeping arrangements. In the meantime, why don't you go get some dinner at the diner." I say, Handing her a few hundred Gil.

"And what exactly are you going to do?" She asks clearly not happy to be excluded from my plan.

"You just worry about getting some meat on those bones and let me handle it." I tell her. She stands there for several seconds before giving in and heading to the diner.

I begin looking around the town. "There's got to be one of them somewhere." I say to myself. I soon spot a local hunter cleaning his weapon. 'Bingo'

I approach the man and he looks up at me. "Something I can help you with?" He asks.

"Just a few questions first." I tell him. He stops cleaning his weapon. "Ask away." He says.

"I just want to make sure but your a local, correct?" I ask him. He gives me a nod. "Well that brings me to my second question. Does this town have anyone suffering from the Starscourge?" I ask him.

"Yeah a few people unfortunately. It's practically everywhere you go nowadays." He tells me somberly.

"Well then, you should spread the news to those people that the Oracle herself happens to be in town and is more then willing to heal them before she rests for the night." I tell him. His eyes light up with surprise and excitement and his sword drops to the ground forgotten.

"She is?! That's great! I knew she couldn't be dead! Where is she?" He asks me standing up.

"She is currently at the the diner. We just arrived a few minutes ago." I tell him.

"Oh wow! I'll go spread the word." He says excitedly. He jogs off to go tell those affected.

'And now we wait.' I think to myself as I begin heading towards the diner to meet up with Luna.

When I walked in I immediately spotted her sitting at one of the booths. She may not be wearing all white anymore with my jacket covering her, but not many people in lucis have blond hair. I sat down across from her and a waiter immediately walked up to the table. "I take it your her number 2?" The waiter asked. I simply nodded my head before looking at the short menu and ordering.

The waiter walked away going back into the kitchen to get my order. "Did you find us a place to stay?" I turn to look at Luna. She must have been hungry because she is almost done her food.

"I'm working on it." I tell her, but her expression showed she was unconvinced. The waiter soon returned with my meal and I thanked him before digging in.

As the waiter walked away another person walked up to us. He was a young man, possibly in his early twenties but he looked rather sick. "Lady Oracle?" He asked, desperation on his voice. She turned to the man in surprise. I listened while continuing to eat. "Is it truly you?" He asked.

She gave him a small smile and a nod. Relief washed over his face as he fell to his knees. He spoke once again. "Lady Luna. I heard word you were here and came immediately. I have been plagued by the starscourge for days with little hope of survival. Please I beg of-" he was cut off as Luna placed her hands on his shoulders as they began to glow a warm yellow.

"Say no more. I will happily heal you. It is my duty as the Oracle." She said kindness seeping from her voice. The few other people in the diner were watching the miracle that she performed on the man. I continued eating, only listening. I hear the incantation she whispers as her hands glow brighter.

After several moments the color of the man's face came back. His breathing became easier and the pain he felt must have disappeared from the relief he showed. Her hands stopped glowing and she removed them from his shoulders. "The starscourge is gone from you, but you still will feel some residual pain for the upcoming days."

He stood up from where he kneeled. "You have done something no one else could. I couldn't ask anymore of you. Thank you my lady." He said as he bowed before walking away.

Someone else walked up to her immediately after a older man holding a young girl in his arms. I could tell she was affected by the same plague but hers seemed much more advanced. "Lady Lunafreya! Please! I had lost all hope for my daughter." It was then that I noticed a few more people by the door most of whom looked to be affected as well.

Luna went through the same process with the young girl. I heard them give there thanks before leaving and making way for the young woman. This process happened 2 more time before I heard what I was listening for. "Thank you for healing my wife. If there is any way we can repay you just let us know." He told her as he bowed to her.

"Thank you for your kindness but I need nothing of you for what I do, it brings me joy to see happiness on the faces of others." She replied very humbly. They began walking away. I got up from my chair and she ignored me in favor of healing an elderly man.

I caught up to the man and his wife outside the diner. "Excuse me?!" I called out to them. They stopped and turned to me.

"You're the young man who was with the Oracle. How can I help you?" The man asked happily.

"Well I'm sorry to bother you but you offered your help to the Oracle?" I asked him.

They nodded their heads. "What about it?" He asked.

"Well since Luna is much to humble I suppose I have to ask, but we arrived in town and quickly realized that we have no place to stay the night." I say to him.

"Say no more we will begin preparing our spare bedroom immediately." The woman said. The man nodded and said "Yes, it's the least we can do after what she did." He said.

The man turns to one of the buildings and points. "We live on the third floor of that building over there. Just knock and we will let you in." He said.

"Thank you. I'll let Luna know." I tell them before walking back into the diner. She was finishing healing the last person as I sat down. When she did, he thanked her profusely before leaving us.

Now that the eyes weren't all on her she slumped back into the booth letting her exhaustion show. She will probably be annoyed about what I did but it's not up for debate after what she will be going through tomorrow.

The covenants, they killed the Oracle of my world. And for what? The gods were completely useless to me in the end. All they cared about was seeing to it that I fix their mistakes.

I bring my thoughts back to Luna. "Come on." I say. "We've got a big day tomorrow. Let's get to bed." I tell her as I stand up.

She looks at me with annoyance. "You've found somewhere for us to sleep?" She asks wearily. I let a small smirk appear on my face.

"Yes I did."

 ** _Mirrored Fate_**

 _I pushed myself up from the road to look towards the reason I crashed. As I suspected the white dog was sitting on the side of the road waiting for me. I got up and ran to it as it began walking. Suddenly I was no longer following it through the forest but the desert. It barked at me to follow it as it ran up the side of a beached boat before disappearing inside._

 _I followed it in and walked into a train filled with armored troops. I walked towards the front of the train car looking for the dog until I got to the other end. I turned to the doors and saw myself but noticed something was off about my reflection. It looked wrong._

 _I didn't linger on it because the train came to a stop and I found the dog again standing at the top of the steps waiting for me. I push my way through the crowd and suddenly I'm no longer in the subway but at some kind of mining station. I can't keep up with the dog so I begin unceremoniously shoving my way through the troops. They begin to turn aggressive and point their guns at me but I pay no mind._

 _I jump over a railing onto a lower walkway to avoid the troops coming up the stairs. They turn around to give chase. I continue to follow the dog but found myself blocked by more troops coming up the stairs._

 _I slide past the first one knocking it from behind before hitting the one behind it to the side. I summon a dagger as stab the gun the next one aimed at me before kicking the trooper. I summon a sword and throw it at the dog waiting patiently in the elevator. The warp happens different than how I usually warp, no leftover particles, no high speed movement. It felt more like a real warp. I paid it little mind as I rolled into the elevator and slapped the down button._

 _Bullets riddle the elevator as I looked into the dogs burning eyes. Luna blocked the blade with her trident but it was knocked to the side. She put up a barrier to protect herself from the next few swipes but the barrier shattered sending her to the ground._

 _She crawls towards the trident reaching for it but it is picked up before she can reach it._

 _The elevator suddenly disappears leaving me and the white dog in a free fall. I summon a dagger and stab it into a wall to stop myself. Instead of coming to a stop as I suspected, I was suddenly laying on the ground of a bridge. I got up and immediately noticed I was surrounded by magitek troopers. I summon the other dagger to match the one I have._

 _I throw them both but warp to one slamming my boots into two of the troopers. I roll up summoning them back to me and slicing the necks of two of the troopers. I switch to a spear and slice several of the nearby infantry with a single swipe before switching to a large sword in a single motion continuing the onslaught. I switch back to a spear killing a few more troopers before throwing a fire spell at a group of the troopers._

 _Suddenly I was in the a beautiful hallway fighting a behemoth. I sliced its throat but it just came back with a swing. I throw my sword nearby in an attempt to warp away but it fails and I'm back in the spot I first was. I get hit by the behemoth and slammed into a pillar nearby. The dog barks at me and I leave the fight to follow it. I begin running towards a mirror._

 _On the other side I notice what looks like me but distinctly different. He was calmly walking towards the mirror, the behemoth on his side lay dead behind him. Unlike me he seemed to not have a scratch on him while my clothes were ripped to shreds and I was bloodied and bruised._

 _"You're no king. You're a child living in a fantasy." He says. I jump into the mirror the same time he walks into it. Suddenly I'm in water swimming to the surface. I swim to the surface and am suddenly in front of an imperial base. I hold up a spear ready to strike but suddenly it disappears from my hands._

 _I have to avoid the barrage of bullets and hide. I slammed into a trooper and steal their gun, using it to kill the remaining troopers. Suddenly a magitek sentry appears and begins firing upon me and the dog. I take aim at the mech but it fired knocking the gun away from me. The dog jumped out of cover drawing the mechs fire. I run up the stairs nearby and grabbed a chain, hooking it around a crane before throwing the other end at the mech._

 _I quickly push a button on the crane making it move. The mech begins pulling against the crane to the point that it falls over pulling the crane down on top of it. I run over to the dog laying on the ground. Suddenly the ground gives way._

I once again wake up in a sweat. 'That dream again?' I think to myself. I sit up in my bed in the Leville. I notice that it seems to be almost be the middle of the day meaning the guys decided to let me sleep in.

I sit there thinking and analyzing the dream. Trying to make some kind of sense of it. The problem was I could only remember bits and pieces of the dream. Fragments of it. But something I do remember is my reflection on that mirror his darker hair, his red eyes, and those cold words. 'You're no king. You're a child living in a fantasy.' I think to myself. What this dream was telling me I couldn't figure it out so I gave up for now.

 ** _Mirrored Fate_**

"God I miss the regalia." I tell her. We've been walking since early morning and we are now climbing the largest overhang to get to the meteor. Luna looks over to me with some confusion.

"Do you honestly believe your car could traverse this?" She asks me. I think about it for several seconds.

"Well no but at least then we could have taken the road." I look over to her. "And how can you even walk in those heels?" I ask her. She lets out a small laugh.

"It comes with practice." She says as we continue walking.

"Well you should get some more casual clothes. That bright white dress isn't good for much other than announcing the location of the oracle." I tell her truthfully before turning back to the new phone in my hand. Last night I went and bought a phone so that I would be able to access the internet. There are things that I wanted to know without having to ask her constantly.

What I'm looking at currently is the biography of one Noctis Lucis Caelum. Everything seemed similar to what I had up until a apparent attack on his life by a demon that left him crippled. That must have been why they went and meet the Oracle but that's not even mentioned on here.

One of the most concerning things I noticed was a lack of achievements in battle.

I look back at Luna deciding whether or not to ask before finally deciding to. "Hey Luna?" She looks at me and gives me a hum of acknowledgement. "Did your Noctis ever fight in the battles leading up to the attack on Insomnia?" I ask her fearing the answer.

She gives me a confused look. "No. By the time all the territories were lost other than Leide Noctis was only 17 and therefor his father made argument that he shouldn't fight. And before he turned 18 his father put up the wall using the power of the crystal and the Ring of Lucii." She tells me. I can't help it when my face contorts to one of shock and anger. "Why? Did you fight?" She asks.

"Of course I fought!" I tell her, perhaps raising my voice tad too much. "My god! Your noctis is probably a pansy! I started fighting when I was 15!" I tell her. Her face shows her shock at the age.

"And your father allowed it?!?" She asks in surprise.

"Allowed it?! He suggested it to me!" I tell her as I kick a stone in anger. "He wasn't told his destiny and he wasn't allowed to fight before the attack?! Etro help him! Your noctis is probably so woefully underprepared for this that is a miracle he lives!" I tell her but she remains completely quiet.

"And what the hell is the Ring of Lucii?!" I ask her in frustration. She seems confused. "Is that the ring you found so important when we first met?" I ask her.

"You mean you didn't have that in your world?" She asks I immediately shake my head. "Well it's how the crystal is controlled." She says pausing before continuing. "It also allows the wearer the ability to use the crystals magic if they are not of Royal Blood. But they have to pass the judgment of the past kings of Lucis to get that power. But when someone of Royal blood wears it, they are given even greater power and new abilities." She explains. I think about what she tells me for several moments.

"Well then why don't I wear it? After all I am royal blood." I explain to her. As I reach out my hand. She hardly even need to think about her answer.

"No." She tells me. A frown appears on my face as she continued. "We don't know if the kings see it that way and if they don't and you fail to pass their judgment then the results are... horrid. And even if you pass, they demand some kind of sacrifice for its use. A toll for its power." She tells me.

She continues after a moment. "Believe me, I've thought long and hard about it. This ring, just having it on my person, it takes away from my strength continuously, but the risk is to great." She explains as she walks past my open hand.

I think for several seconds before telling her. "Then at least let me carry it. After all there's a higher chance it would be useful to me than to you." I explain to her.

"It's not up for discussion. King Regis entrusted me to get the ring to his son." She tells me.

'Regis? Dad must have a different name here.' I think to myself as I catch up to her. We soon reach the top of the hill and find ourselves overlooking the meteor.

I look up at the sun and don't like what I see. "We need to make haste. It's already almost 1 and we've been walking since 7. We might barely make it back before dark." I tell her. She agrees and we begin making our way towards the center.

I notice a faint feeling that I recall, as we walk towards the center. We turn a corner and find a cliff. And on that cliff looks to be a king's casket. In his hands is a long silver sword and I immediately recognize it as one of those weapons of light from that island.

"This used to be a royal tomb. The kings of lucis would be put around the kingdom in tombs when they die along with their weapon, their souls still lingering with it. These weapons are called royal arms and they are each extremely powerful. The powers they grant to those of Royal blood are great." She explains to me noticing the confusion on my face.

I think about it for several moments. "Yeah I actually have a royal arm. Only one though." I tell her as I walk up to the statue. "Collecting it left me in quite the state of helplessness and agony for several minutes. So I'm wondering if it's worth grabbing." I explain to her.

She thinks about it for several moments. "Royal arms can't really be used by non royalty. It's useless to them. Perhaps some adjustment had to made in order for you to use it." She explains to me. I think about it while staring at the sword.

"I'll leave it for your boyfriend. He needs all the help he can get." I say as I turn away.

She seemed to be slightly irked by the boyfriend comment but she says nothing as we continue down the path.

We reach the bottom of the meteor and walk to the edge of the cliff. "We need to be ready to go quickly. The empire will know what I've done almost immediately." She explains to me.

"And yet the only resistance we've met was that blockade at the front entrance." I say. She ignores me as she walks forward several more feet before stopping. Suddenly there is a slight change of wind and Gentiana appears next to her holding a trident.

She hands the trident to Luna, "Good luck lady Oracle." She says before looking at me for several seconds and disappearing.

'Get the feeling she doesn't like me.' I think to myself 'but then again, I don't really care about the opinion of a god.'

Luna opens her mouth and begins singing.

It's quite beautiful but she must be using magic to amplify her voice. It truly is a song that could wake the gods. There are no words to it. Just the sound of her voice to different tunes.

It was a song I heard before but I wasn't paying attention to it back then. 'Etro. Your awakening brought nothing but chaos to my broken world.' I thought as I clenched my fists.

Suddenly the ground shook and she stopped singing.

(Latin if you care. Also the spacing of sentences are very important in this language so the sentences are sometimes

Split like this.)

" **Quiz excitavit mihi**?" I hear a thundering voice say.

"I am Lunafreya, Blood of the Oracle. God of strength and earth, I ask of you, Enter this covenant so that the chosen king can fulfill his destiny!" She tells to the heavens.

Suddenly the meteor begins to move and the ground begins to shake. The meteor rises high up and under it, is the god himself holding up the meteor.

While still mildly impressed I'm not all that surprised as I was the first time I saw him.

" **Quod Rex ut habet mea robur dignus est**

 **fortitudinem meam faciet mutuari** " he said.

"Then challenge him yourself, so that he may prove his worth!" She pleads.

" **i expecto provocatione eius** " It said before it began to glow.

" **Terra et Caelum** "

" **Altitudo et profundum** "

" **natus moriensque** "

These were the words is began repeating. Luna too began to glow and many particles of light began pouring from her to the Titan. She was most certainly in pain during this. When it stopped she leaned heavily on the trident.

I can't help the frown that appears on my face as I watch her now. Despite not knowing her that well, Anger rises in me. I walk over to her and put her arm around my shoulder to help her stand. I look up to the Titan to see him studying me intently as if the pain he just caused Luna was of little importance to him. My frown turns to a glare. Had Luna known of my feelings of the gods she would have never brought me.

" aspiciens prospiciebat

quando potest videre

tu interficiamini

et Disputatio indigentiam sanctulus Deorum ex omnipotentis" I say to him, putting plenty of sarcasm into the last part.

I hear Luna's labored breathing hitch and I look to see her staring at me with terrified eyes. He roars at my insult to the gods but I ignore him now helping Luna walk back towards the hillside.

A shift of wind and Gentiana appears next to us. "We have lived for thousands of years watching over your kind. Yet you insinuate that we are self-righteous." I look to her as I continue walking with Luna.

"You force a destiny on a mere boy, expecting him to die to fix a mistake you've made while you sit and watch. And that 'god' over there has the gall to ask if he is worthy?!" I ask anger becoming overwhelming in my voice. "Is he worthy?! Like he and I had a fucking choice! All you gods care about is seeing us to our deaths!" I yell at her as I continued to walk.

Gentiana says nothing and the Titan remains silent. I practically carry Luna over the top of the hill. We walk along the large rocks toward the outpost in silence. I wish we could move faster. The sun is going down soon and we have some distance to travel.

Suddenly Luna's legs give out from under her at this point she is held up by me holding her alone. "I just need a minute. The covenant took more out of me than expected and the Ring is taking all that is left." She explains to me.

"We don't have a minute Luna. The sun is going down." I tell her. She breathes heavy for several seconds before trying to get her footing and immediately falling into me again. I shift her behind me before bending down and lifting her up on my back. "If you won't let me carry the ring, I'll just have to carry you." I tell her as I begin a speedy walk leaving the trident behind. I feel a brush of the wind and look to see Gentiana picking it up.

'At least she does something useful.' I think to myself.

It takes several minutes before Luna loses her tenseness and weakly leans into me but I barely notice it. I walk at as quick of a pace my legs can safely take us, making sure to avoid any of the more hazardous wildlife. The sun is completely gone when we make it back and I'm actually surprised I don't run into any demons on the outskirts of town but I don't look a gift horse in the mouth.

I bring her back to the apartment we stayed before and knock on the door. The woman answers the door and lets me us in. After once again thanking her for her hospitality, I go into the bedroom and gently sit Luna down on the bed.

"Thank you, Noctis."


	3. Chapter 3

I really don't like how this chapter has turned out. It feels to rushed and try's to cover to much without really settling on anything for more that a few seconds but ive run out of patience with myself so here it is. Let me know what you think in the review section. 

It's been 2 days and she's barely gotten any better. Yet here we are, on our way to awaken the Fulgurian. Luna insisted that we awaken him as soon as possible. And despite the fact that she can barely do so, she insisted on walking without my help. 'Independent... and hardheaded.' I think to myself. I told her to wait at least one more day before trying to push herself and she keeps a slow pace as she struggles to move any faster.

'Yet here we are... what drives you Luna? It can't be for recognition, perhaps because it's the right thing? Or maybe it's all for his sake.'

I look down at the white dog walking next to us. Apparently named Pryna, it's seems quite saddened by the state of its owner. 'She is crazy, that was the first god and we are already doing the second.'

When we reach the Chocobo outpost I immediately notice the chain and barbwire fencing. When we get into the area it is only midday. She walks over to a table and sits down. I walk up to the chocobo ranch owner.

"Hey what's going on? All the chocobo rental stations are down and there is barbed wire all over the place." I say to the man. He turns around to me and I get a good look at him.

He was an older man with a stout build and gray hair and beard. He is wearing a gray flat cap, a gray shirt with sleeves rolled up, a brown vest, a yellow scarf and white trousers.

"Real sorry. But chocobo are not able to go out. There's a behemoth named deadeye in the area that's been scarring all our birds, and until someone deals with it I'm fraid I cannot rent them out for use." He explains to me.

I raise my brows. "A behemoth you say? Any idea where to find it?" I ask.

"It's den is right behind this outpost but- hey!" He says as I start walking away. I walk up to Luna who was now having a small lunch. "Hey I'm gonna go deal with something. You stay here." I tell her.

"Where are you going?" She asked concerned. I continued walking and without turning around and yelled "I already told you. I have to go deal with something." I heard a huff come from her but nothing more.

As I walk around the chain linked fence and into the forest I notice the smell of blood in the air. I walk farther in and hear the sound of heavy branches breaking.

The trail takes me into what looks to be a narrowing pathway with rocks on ether side. "As if." I say jokingly. I warp onto the top of one of the rock walls and begin walking along it. I hear the beast moving around in the den. Sight is becoming limited very quickly as a heavy fog rolls in. I jump off the rock wall try to find the beast.

I finally spot it just as it leaps over the rock wall into what appears to be some ruins. I hop a small fence and land in the ruins. Strangely enough the fog stops just outside of the fence. I notice the beast walking into an open area in the ruins the only thing noticeable in it is several oil drums and a shambled stone wall. The only part of the wall still remaining was the pillars and some rubble in between them.

I warp to the edge of the clearing. The behemoth must have smelled me because it quickly turned around roared in anger. "You're hardly a challenge." I say to aloud.

I warp directly in front of the behemoth and it stands up on its two back legs before swinging at me with its giant paw. Fifteen different weapons all simultaneously appear in-front of the swing, parrying the blow with relative ease. The behemoth stumbles back. I raise my hand to the floating weapons and twist my wrist. Axes, swords, katanas, scythes and other weapons all quickly turned to face the behemoth.

I flicked my hand towards it and the weapons followed suit, flying towards it before implanting themselves into its chest. I disappear from the spot and warp to each of the weapons. One by one ripping them out of its hide and taking a quick swing before disappearing to another, leaving the weapon once again in its skin. My speed gradually increases as I warp from weapon to weapon, tearing into the behemoths flesh time and time again. The behemoth finally gets sick of the onslaught after almost 30 warps. It does a full 360 spin, knocking away all the weapons breaking some of the weaker constructed ones.

I warp back before the spin could hit me and reappeared on top of one of the pillars. I summon my ultima sword and raise it in the air. The ten remaining weapons rise up into the air and stop. I concentrate for several seconds and more weapons begin to materialize. A total of twenty-five different weapons collected throughout my journey had materialized. I then bring the sword down pointing it at the behemoth and all twenty five weapons lodged themselves into its back.

It lets out a great roar of pain and begins to stumble but doesn't quite fall down. I grab my ultima sword with both hands and jump down before bringing the sword down on its neck. The blade cuts deep. The beast falls to the ground letting out one last weak roar before completely collapsing never to rise again.

All of my weapons glow white before disappearing back into my armory. I was Quite happy that It did manage to give me a heavy workout, the more weapons a caelum can control at once represents the amount of strength and power they had. not necessarily meaning the amount of weapons but rather the amount being controlled at once. I summon a mace before slamming it against the behemoths horn, breaking it. I take the piece with me back to the chocobo outpost.

Storm clouds began rolling in much quicker than natural. It immediately started raining the second the clouds passed overhead. The Lightning began with it but strangely enough it seemed to have some sort of noticeable pattern.

"N-no." I say quietly to myself. "She wouldn't have." I say again more firmly, as if that would some how convince me. "I was only gone for 2 hours." I say to myself. After several seconds of standing still I broke into a sprint back to the chocobo outpost. "No she fucking didn't."

I reach the outpost and Look around but find her nowhere. I go up to the man renting the trailers and ask him if he's seen her. He tells me he hasn't.

I run up to the chocobo owner and throw the horn at him. "Behemoths dead, I need this." I say as I jump onto a chocobo. The man tries to argue but I already have the chocobo jumping over the fence and running into the woods. I searched all over the area but couldn't find sign of her anywhere.

But then I heard a bark right next to me. I look over and see pryna barking at me. "Alright show me where." I tell her. She turns and takes off in a sprint. I am actually surprised at how fast the dog is but the chocobo has no trouble keeping up. She leads me to a trail that abruptly cuts off. It's then that I see her. Leaning heavily on a tree right in front of a cave mouth. I feel the adrenaline quickly leave me as I realize she was alive although after doing two covenants back to back she can't be in good condition. I bring the chocobo up next to her before jumping off.

She doesn't acknowledge my presence. "I thought we were going to wait a few more days." I say to her. She just stands there not saying anything as the rain hits us. I stare at her thinking of something to say. I want to be angry but there's no telling how well she is doing.

I notice she has many cuts and several bruises after assumably going in and out of that cave full of deamons. "How did you even get through that cave? That's what I was for. Remember?" I ask her. She still doesn't respond.

I reach over and lightly grab her shoulder. "Ahh!" She yells out in pain as she flinches away from my touch. She falls into the tree before letting out a shout of agony. She falls away from the tree and I catch her. She struggles in my arms as if my hands are on fire. "Luna stop!" I say as I hold onto her as lightly as possible.

She ceases her struggling and simply stands there quivering whenever a larger raindrop hits her. It's then I notice that she is ice cold as well. I quickly decided the next corse of action had to be getting her to a doctor immediately. I hold her up with one arm as I take off my jacket before switching arms and taking it off the other arm. I feel the rain hitting me As I gently put her arms into my jacket before zipping it up.

"Man, at this point it's like I don't even have a jacket at all." I say jokingly. She lets out a small chuckle. 'That's good. If she can laugh that means it might be fine.' I think to myself. I look over at the chocobo before telling it to sit. I carefully picked up Luna before sitting her upright on the chocobo. The chocobo stands back up as I hold an arm on her to keep Luna steady. I mount the chocobo, sitting behind her. She leans back against me and I grab hold of the chocobos reins from ether side of her to hold her upright.

I look back down at the dog who lets out a small wine. "I'll get her help. Don't worry." I say to the dog. I have the chocobo go at a slow pace as to not hurt Luna. The dog pryna walking next to us.

"I can't believe you went in there by yourself." I tell her quietly. She doesn't say anything for some time and I had almost believed she had ether passed out or didn't hear me before she made a quite reply.

"Most gods aren't so forgiving of slander towards them as the Titan was. I decided it was best not to bring you." She tells me. I think about it silently for several seconds.

"That is fair, but what you did was just foolish." I say to her. Suddenly I heard thunder strike remarkably close to us from behind. Luna lets out a scream when the chocobo lurches but I hold onto her as I turn to see what was struck. I see a large square bolder roll off the top of the hill but lose sight of it as it falls below the trees to where I presume the cave entrance was.

'Guess the god is picky as to who gets to visit him.' I think to myself. The chocobo takes a moment to calm before I have it going back towards the chocobo outpost once again. Soon the outpost comes into sight and the chocobo owner comes running up to us once we come into his sight.

"So, wanna explain what that was about? I had this checked out and found that it's genuine behemoth horn but that doesn't mean you can just take one of my birds." He tells me as he points at me with the horn.

"I had to track down my missing companion here." I said motioning towards Luna. The man looked at her for several seconds before a realization struck.

"Lunafreaya?!" He questioned. She opened her tired eyes gave him a small smile and nodded before wincing again from the movement. I had the chocobo sit down before I got off and picked Luna up bridal style. I sat her down at one of the chairs for dinning at the outpost.

The owner and I sat down in two seats next to her. "I need to get her to a doctor immediately." I tell the man. Luna opens her mouth to speak up but a quick and hard glare from me keeps her from arguing.

"I'm afraid you out of luck. Lestallum and old lestallum are the closest places you can find a doctor around here and with the barricades back up lestallum is out of the question." He tells me.

"What?! But that's a whole days ride from here!" I say in anger. He nods his head in agreement before confirming the bad news. "Im afraid those are your only options." He says.

I turn to look at Luna. Her tired eyes meeting mine. We hold eye contact for several seconds. 'Ugh! Why do I even care?! This isn't even my world! I barely even know her. I think to myself. 'But I do care. And I know why. It's been my weakness and greatest fear for a long time. And it makes me sick.'

I turn back to the man. "Take the some of the bounty money and prepare our chocobo." I say to the man. He looked me in the eyes for several seconds. Analyzing me. He glances up at the sun before looking back at me.

"I hope taking down Deadeye by yourself wasn't just a fluke." He says before standing jogging off to get us chocobo supplies.

I turn back to Luna and I think she already knows what we are doing. I open my mouth to speak but something catches my eye behind her in the distance. It takes my brain several seconds to register what it is that my eyes spot but when it does I freeze like a deer in headlights.

Adrenaline begins pumping.

My heart pumping faster.

I feel my stomach churn.

Anger is my most prominent emotion. Fear being second.

I hear a voice in the back of my head.

 _'Kill him.'_

I wish nothing more than to sink a sword into him but I realize that I can't do anything here, now. Not with Luna. He turns his head towards this direction but someone walks infront of him blocking us from his line of sight. I see my one and only chance getting us out of this and I take it. I disappeared from the spot landing on the roof of the building... having left Luna behind.

The person walks out of the way of his view and he spots Luna who was looking around in confusion. Holding an umbrella over himself, was a man dressed in a long, black jacket that has a white and gray trim, and matching trousers. He wears a red scarf and a hooded, gray and white mantle and a black fedora sitting on top of his red-violet hair. His amber eyes were locked on Luna and he began walking towards her. A sickening smile on his face.

Arden Lucis Caelum sat down in a chair across from Luna, startling her. My heart pounding in my chest drowns out the sound of the rain as they two lock eyes. In the short time I had, just about every conceivable scenario went through my head, but after everything I imagined him doing or saying he once again catches me off guard. He closes his umbrella and says. "Why hello dear princess! Quite the strange weather we're having! Wouldn't you agree?" He says jovially.

 _'End him'_

She looks at him in surprise but quickly regains composure. "Chancellor Ardyn. What a surprise. Come to take me in?" She said

'Arden is ardyn in this world... that's a weird change.' I think to myself but quickly find myself listening again. "No my dear. I'm afraid not. I was just nearby and thought I'd tell you how your dear Noctis is doing." He said with a grin.

She looked at him in surprise. "What did you do?" She asked, almost aggressively. His grin seemed to widen.

"Oh me? I simply saved them when meteor disappeared. I let them on my ship and dropped them off nearby. They should be arriving soon considering they will be needing chocobos as replacement for their car." He said to her.

"Noctis is coming here?!" She said in surprise sitting up quickly. She yelped in pain before falling back into the chair.

Ardyn made a clicking noise with his tong. "Oh dear Luna you've been a reckless girl! 2 covenants in a row? It's amazing you can move at all... but yes you shall see your beloved prince soon." He stood up and opened his umbrella.

 _'Do it now! Gahh-!"_

I push the voice away.

"By the way... that jacket." he said as he stared at my jacket that Luna was currently wearing.

'Oh shit.' I thought quietly. Luna, for what it's worth, didn't even flinch at it's mention.

After several moments of staring he finally said "... black really doesn't suit you dear." He quickly walked away afterwards before getting into a salmon car and driving away.

I warped back down to the table, receiving a short accusatory look from Luna as she slouched back into her chair in pain. "You could have warned me." She said in annoyance.

"No. I couldn't." I say as I stared off into direction the car went. I wanted nothing more than to cut him down... I hear Luna shiver where she sat. 'But I've got something else to take care of.' I think to myself.

I look over at a small weapon shop at the entrance of town. I think about my Arsenal for several moments before walking over to him.

"Hey. What can I do for you?" He says to me. I spent several seconds looking over the weapons he has displayed.

"I would like to buy everything you have that isn't a gun or machine." I said to him, his face turned to one of surprise as I hand him a bag full of almost all the Gil I have. He quickly counts it before looking up at me and nods. He opens up the side door of the shop showing me all of his weapons.

"You forming an army or something?" He asks me as my eyes scan over the weapons. Short swords, javelins, daggers, shields, broadswords are all shown to me. I touch them all with my magic and they begin disappearing into my Arsenal surprising him.

"No, they are all for me." I tell the man as the last of the weapons disappear. I walk away towards another shop and use the last of my money to buy several potions and a few elixirs.

When I get back to the table I see Luna being helped onto the chocobo by the owner and I thank him before climbing onto the bird behind her. "You two take care of my bird now, and good luck." He says. I offer the man my thanks and then we are underway.

I take the bird as fast as it can with two people. The rain continues to pore down soaking me. We travel through the woods for a short time, weaving in and out of the trees making sure to avoid any wildlife.

The trees come to an end and the rocks begin. The crater made by the meteor making a rocky Terran for the chocobo. I avoid any jumps as Luna is already in enough pain as it is. Despite the rain I feel a great amount of heat coming from the meteor. Luna actually stops shivering for this part of our journey. I take the chocobo quickly as it will go through the rocky cliffs, and it is eventually startled by something.

I hear them before I see them and stop the chocobo as a loud howl sounds out in the rocks ahead. Then 6 havocfangs make themselves known by running out from behind some rocks.

I immediately disappear from my spot on the chocobo. Reappearing in front of one of the creatures I summon a broadsword and with both hands take a quick swing at the group of them. I hit one and kill another as the rest of them dodged my strike.

I immediately switch to a javelin before preforming a quick warp towards the injured one, perching in in the belly with the spear. I turn and throw the Spear at one of the beasts that was about to lung at the chocobo with Luna. The havocfang prepares to pounce but is suddenly pierced in the head by my spear.

I hear a growl and turn around just in time to have my ears blasted by a loud howl from one of the havocfangs. It's like I'm suddenly seeing stars and everything is backwards. The three remaining creatures stalks around me realizing that I'm the primary threat and I'm now vulnerable. I calm myself and begin to analyze.

'When I try to move my left arm, my right leg moves. When I try to move my right leg, my right arm moves.' I continue analyzing as quickly as possible as the havocfangs get ready to pounce.

'Left leg moves my Neck. Right arm moves my left leg. Right Elbow bends, my left knee.'

The havocfangs behind me growls signaling its about to pounce.

'Left shoulder, left hand. Neck, right elbow.'

I hear it behind me jump towards me.

'So that means, Right arm!' My left leg tenses up and pushes of the ground putting me in a spin and the havocfang flies past me. Another to my side lunges at me.

'Neck and right leg!' I think to myself. I summon a sword in my right hand and my arm sloppily swings upwards slicing the havocfang's head down the middle.

'right arm.' My leg moves spacing it out from the other. I summon a spear in my right hand. 'Right leg' the spear flys at the beast. My poor aim doesn't kill it but injured it.

'Left le-' my thought gets cut off as a havocfang lands on me and begins tearing into my skin. Without a solid thought process I can only flail as I try to get it off of me.

Suddenly a silver trident stabs into its head killing it. I look over at Luna who is panting heavily as she attempts to take the trident out of the creatures skull. I look at her in surprise and she turns to me.

"I'm not some child who needs your protection constantly." She says in a shaking tone. I can tell she is about to collapse but that doesn't take away from my surprise. She uses a healing spell on me and my confusion is gone. I break a potion for good measure. I push the creature off of me and turn to the last one. I summon another spear and throw it lodging in its neck killing it.

I help Luna back onto the chocobo carefully regardless of what she says. After climbing back onto it, we are once again underway. Luna seems much more tired than before. We continue through the rocks until we reached an opening in the rocks at the foot of a place called coernix station. Then suddenly the rain stopped. I barely paid any attention to it but was glad I was no longer getting anymore wet.

I turned left and began following the road as the mountain was to steep for the chocobo to climb. We continued along the road before I eventually turned the chocobo right following the road. I stopped the chocobo when I saw the blockade. There were several magiteck soldiers and 2 magitek armors.

"Wait here." I told Luna. She replied with a tired nod. I ran up to the barricade, the units began firing the moment they saw me. I summoned my weapons and they effectively blocked the bullets that came my way.

I grab a double sided sword out of the air and cleave two magiteck troopers simultaneously. I switch to my ultima blade and decapitate another before spinning and cutting right into another trooper behind me. I disappeared just a a rocket from one of the magiteck armors hit the ground where I once stood. I appear in the air above the troopers and flick my arm towards the armor. The 12 weapons surrounding me all flew and sliced into the armor knocking it over.

I fell bringing down my sword into the head of another trooper before warping to the next and firmly lodging the sword into its chest.

I hear a rocket fly towards me and call back the weapons just in time to block the explosion. Some of the weapons shatter and fall to pieces at my feet but I simply summon more to take their place.

I bring a closed fist to my chest and it glows blue before I outstretch it towards the armor. "Thundara!" I said and Lightning spell flew from my hand into the magiteck and down to the ground effectively destroying it.

I finish off the last few troopers before climbing back onto the chocobo. I look to the sky, and realize it's already almost 8 o'clock. 'Were not going to make it before nightfall.' I think to myself.

I go through the now unoccupied barricade into a tunnel. The sound of the chocobo running is the only noise I hear. The tunnel is long and it takes us some time to get to the other side. I know what will be waiting for us when we get to the other side but we don't really have a choice.

We come out of the tunnel and upon a large bridge. The chocobo doesn't stop until I hear the sound. Grinding metal.

It comes to a halt as a giant fist appears from the ground pulling itself up. On ether side of it are 2 dark shadows taking form.

'Two ronin and a iron giant. No problem.' I think to myself.

I jump off the chocobo and summon a shield just in time to block the swipe of a ronin. I bash it with the shield but it only stumbles. I summon a spear in my other hand I attempt to skewer it but it knocks my spear to the side and stabs into the opening it created. I barely move out of the way fast enough to dodge it. I summon two swords and preform a spin jump at the ronin . It is sliced several time by my attacks but doesn't die.

I parry a stab from the other ronin knocking its sword to the side and stabbing into it with both swords. I jump away as a giant sword cuts and crushes the ronin and destroys my swords with its sword. I jump onto the sword and run up to the iron giant summoning a shield. I bash the giant as hard as I could before jumping back onto the ground. I bring my hand out pointing my palm at it and throw a Blizzard spell at it to slow it down.

I summon a great sword and go to swing at the giant but am forced to block as the remaining ronin appears in a haze next to me and swipes.

I am forced to block several more strikes before I can counter with one large swing slicing it in two.

I turn back to the giant and roll in order to avoid a fist that slams into the ground where I once stood.

I summon a multitude of floating weapons and slam them all into the giant. It falls down dead.

I stand there panting in order to catch my breath when I notice something in the distance. A Giant figure holding a staff that seemed to be generating Lightning. 'Ramuh.' I think to myself.

He brings down the staff and I can see the damages it causes from even here. Lightning flew everywhere and the land that was seeable became scorched. I don't spend to long on it as I call the chocobo to follow me as I warp along side it to keep up.

Before long two cryogen and a mindflayer appear. "Come on! We're not even at the end of the bridge?!" I complain. I warp into a cryogen with a flame spear and stab into it. It lets out a cry of pain as I sliced the spear through its body. I turn and throw it at the other cryogen. I summon a dagger a flick it at the mindflayer. The creature floats out of its way but I warp to the knife and slam another dagger into the beast.

I summon a sword and stab through its tentacles into the ground locking the deamon in place. It attempts to grab me with its arms but I jump backwards. I then summon a trident and throw it at the monster. The weapon makes quick work of the deamon when it stabs into its head.

I look over at Luna as we begin moving once more. Her overall condition clearly not improving as she now slumped over on the chocobo, barely awake.

I call the chocobo and it begins to follow me as I continue to warp ahead. I notice a shift in the air as we continue. It's something that no regular hunter could notice but something the more experienced ones dread. The deamons should be attacking us but they're not anymore. That's a definite sign of something I feared.

'Something Strong is keeping the others away. Something dangerous.' I think to myself. We make a turn and the town becomes visible in the distance. Suddenly a bright light appeared in the sky pointing towards us. I shield my eyes from the sudden brightness.

'A magiteck engine?' I internally question. The door opened and magiteck solders began dropping out. I summoned two daggers and threw one at a falling trooper. I warped to the troop but quickly realized my mistake as a sword sliced into my shoulder. I warped back several feet but landed in an unceremonious heap, clutching my shoulder.

'Assassins!' I realize in alarm. I pick myself up and break a potion over my arm. The wound heals up well leaving a healed scar showing through my now ripped sleeve. I bring my attention back to the troopers just in time as they sprint at me.

I summon an large axe and slam it in the ground stopping a spinning trooper swinging his swords in a circle. I duck under the swing of another assassin and roll backwards to avoid a stab before summoning the battle axe and slicing a trooper in half.

'4 left.' I think to myself. I warp above another trooper with a mace in hand and bring it down on its head knocking it down and crushing it. I summon a shield as I block a stab. I am forced back as another trooper swipes from the side. I let the shield disappear before summoning a large sword. I swing at both of the troopers but only hit one as the other one jumped back.

The trooper goes to the ground. I reach my hand out and summon several spears In annoyance before they all rushed the assassin, killing it. I summon a crossbow and turn towards the last one as it ran towards Luna and the chocobo before stopping short as a bolt went into the back of its head.

It was now, in the silence that I realized that the feeling from before wasn't gone but in fact was stronger than before.

I summon my ultima sword. I walk slowly and quietly towards the chocobo, never letting my guard down for a second.

I finally saw something when I was just a few feet away from them. A floating smoke cloud appeared above me. I quickly raised my sword in a block as a figure appeared out of the smoke cloud bringing a sword down towards me.

The blades clash against one another and I push back with all my strength as I get a look at the creature. I can't help a gasp when I realize what it was. 'An ayakashi?! Here?!?'

I push its sword to the side and when I go to swipe it disappears. 'This isn't ideal, It took all 5 of us to take this thing down before.' I think to myself, remembering Stella and ignis not walking out of this fight unharmed. I look over at Luna just in time to see her falling off the chocobo, unconscious. I warp to the birds side and catch her Before she can hit the ground. 'This isn't good. I can't watch her and fight.' I look around and see the ayakashi standing a few feet away as if it was waiting.

The realization soon hits me that it doesn't care about her. 'It wants an challenge.' I lay her down on the side of the now sitting bird before standing back up to face the deamon.

"You want a challenge? I'll give you one." I say as I kneel down to the ground. I place my right hand to the ground and begin concentrating.

The air shifts. White floating crystals begin appearing in the air. They begin clumping together in large chunks. The crystals all begin to form the shapes of many different weapons floating aimlessly in the air. I continue concentrating before finally the weapons solidify. Dozens of swords, axes, spears, tridents, daggers, maces and shields all float in place waiting for use.

I stand up looking up just in time to see the deamons blade inching towards me. The blade almost reached me before I warped upwards grabbing a spear several feet above me. I bring the spear down drawing several of the nearby weapons with me towards the creature. The weapons all crashed into the ground as the deamon is replaced by a black cloud of dust.

I grab the spear with both hands and yank it out of the ground I bring the weapons in-front of me and block several of the coins it threw at me. A spear in one hand and a sword in the other I run at it, the weapons in-front of me continuing to block the projectile money he threw. I reach him and he pulls out his sword from its sheath. In a single swipe he breaks the weapons guarding me, knocking them away. I take the opportunity and stab the spear into its chest before swinging the sword cleaving off its arm.

I release the spear and warp back grabbing a axe as the deamon swipes where I once stood. It puts its sword back into its sheath and I watch as black mist appears around its missing appendage before it forms a new arm for the ayakashi. It grabs the spear in its chest before ripping it out and snapping it in half. The wound on its chest heals similar to the arm.

I throw the axe at it and several weapons fly with it. The deamon disappears in a black mist and appears on the other side of the weapons and runs at me. Pulling its weapon from its sheath it stabs at me. I push it to the side with my ultima sword before stepping towards the creature. I grab hold of its clothing and slam my boot down onto its foot before stabbing into its chest with my sword.

The creature, not caring that it was locked in place switches into a reverse grip and attempts to stab me. I command all the weapons in a close vicinity to aim and fly towards it from all directions.

The deamon stops its attack short, before taking its sword and stabbing it into the ground. Black spikes spring out of the ground at high speeds crashing into the weapons shattering them. Looking down as I feel an unimaginable pain in my chest I see a black spike coming out of the ground and into my abdomen.

I look up and see several of my weapons protruding from its chest through its back. I look up even higher and see the eyes of the The warrior that once was. Unwavering and uncaring it stared down at me.

I ripped my ultima blade from its chest before stabbing into its chest again, and again. The creature twists its blade and I feel several more spike stab into me. This time I can't help the cry of agony that escapes me. "Gaaah!" My grip on the blade loosens. The creature takes its blade out of the ground and the spikes disappear leaving me to fall to the ground in a heap. The deamon steps back.

I manage to get to my knees. I look to see several heavily bleeding holes in my chest. I look up at the deamon and it flick its blade out ready to strike. I reach my hand into my back pocket but the creature swipes up, slicing into my chest.

I feel my strength leave me as I fall to the ground. I go limp as my hand opens up to reveal a glowing orange feather broken in half.

The ayakashi steps away as the my weapons begin falling from its back. The feather bursts into a light flame that quickly covers me. All the wounds on me close and I feel my strength return. I stand up quickly and call my ultima blade back to me. 'God, it was so much work to get one of those.' I think to myself.

Feeling the effects of the pheniex down I point my blade at the deamon, ready to fight once more. "Round two?" I say jokingly. It bends its knees getting ready to strike. I bring my open hand to my chest and the remaining weapons that I summoned all come to me and form a circle surrounding me.

The ayakashi disappears in black smoke and reappears in front of me. It swipes at me and I use my ultima sword to block. I command the weapons and they respond. They quickly begin tearing through the deamon and my attacks seem to be starting to hurt the creature.

It pushes my sword away but instead of jumping back, I run into the deamon. I ram my shoulder into it causing it to stumble. I grab a second sword out of the air and jump at it preforming a spin. I slice it multiple times all while my weapons continue to pierce it. I let go of my weapons after the spin and outstretch both of my hands. All the weapons stop and turn to it. I clap my hands together and every weapon pierces the creature from all angles.

It falls to its knees and stays there. I pull out my ultima blade from its chest before lobbing its head off. The ayakashi falls to the ground before disappearing into black mist leaving my weapons crashing to the ground.

I finally relaxed as my weapons begin turning back into crystals before vanishing completely. I walked over to Luna and pick her up. I pull her up on the chocobo with me and ride it to town.

The lights of the town are blinding but comforting. I receive some conserved looks before a hunter confronts me. He brings me to the doctors home. After knocking hard on the door a woman opens it. "Unless someone is dead or dying then I don't-" she stops to look at me and Luna. "Is that lady Lunafreya?" After a tired nod she tells me to come in. "Just treat her. I'm mostly fine." I tell the woman. But almost immediately after laying Luna down I collapse on the ground and fell into unconscious from exhaustion.

 _ **Mirrored fate**_

 _From an outside view I see what looks like me shirtless and leaning heavily on a trident. I'm standing in a fire scorched area surrounded by giant flameing dogs with three heads._

 _I look confused as I frantically look around before looking at the trident in my hands dropping it in shock. I see a Luna's unmoving body covered in blood. I notice the trident has blood on it as well and realize what has happened. "I've done as you've asked." I say to seemingly no one. "Now give it to me."_

 _I am on the top of the Cindale. I see my dad. Walking towards the crystal. "How many must die before you are satisfied?" He says._

 _A malicious and mutated voice replies. " I have seen many deaths, but now I am only looking forward to one, then I can rest." It says._

 _"He will take responsibility, you know." My father replies._

 _"As must we all."_

 _"...May the gods forgive me, and so may he for dragging him into this."_

 _I dropped down clutching Luna before screaming into the sky._

"NOOOO!!!" I yell as I wake up in bed. I hear the door of the hotel burst open and see gladiolus had broken down the door. He scans the room before looking at me having calmed down.

I see Prompto poke his head out from behind Gladiolus. "Dude I told you we have to stop letting him sleep late." Prompto says taking a moment to look at the door. "And was it really to much trouble to use the knob big guy?"

Gladiolus huffs before pushing past Promto and walks back to his room. Prompto closes the door and stands there starring at me strangely. "... wanna talk about it?" He asks.

I shake my head before looking down at my lap. I hear Promto let out a groan. He walks over to the bed and sits down. "Come on man. It's me. I'm not gladiolus who expects the world of you or ignis who would just tell you to take better care of yourself. I'm your best friend. And while there's no way I could ever give you any sound advice, it would probably help to get it off your chest." He explains to me.

I look up at him my eyes meeting with his. "I... I killed Luna in my dream... Or it looked like me but something was off, I can't place it. But it's been a reoccurring dream leading up to this." I explain to him.

"Well That sounds ominous but I'm sure it's nothing. Not only am I sure she's fine but she's got that guy protecting her." He explains to me.

"Right, that guy." I say.

I look up at Prompto as he seems to be quite. His brows are furrowed as he examines me. "What?" I ask

"Dude? Are you really jealous of a guy you don't even know?" He asks.

"What?! No!" I quickly denied.

"Hahaha, you totally are! You afraid some big strapping man is getting all Cozy with your fiancé?" He says laughing at me.

"I told you I'm not jealous." I denied again. I pick up a Pillow and beam it at Promto it hits him but he continues to laugh.

He finally calms down before attempting to reassure me. "Dude. You've got nothing to worry about. Not only do I doubt Luna would be swayed so easily, but what would he have that you don't? Your a prince with the Power of the kings and the gods on your side." He says semiserious. "Bet you he doesn't qualify for any of those."

While I knew he was joking I did feel a little better. "Yeah. Sure. Let me get dressed and we'll head out to meet up with Iris and the others." I tell him. He stands up from the bed and walks to the door.

"All right then. Nice talk." He says jokingly. Before walking out and closing the door, only to have it slowly swing open again as it was broken.

I quickly put on my clean clothes and bush my teeth before heading out of the hotel.

I expect to see Prompto or someone waiting for me when I walk out but the town is mostly barren weirdly enough. I walk around looking for any of the guys but don't see them. I get to the main walkway of lestallum when I notice a large crowd all watching something in the sky nearby.

'What is that?!'

I see a large flying machine a few miles southwest. It's clearly imperial in origin but larger than anything I've seen them use before. It looked diamond in shape and was completely white. Smaller magiteck engines could bee seen coming out of the sides of it.

"Zegautus keep. The flagship of the imperial fleet and pride of the empire." I hear ignis say to from my side. I turn to him in surprise.

"But I thought it left after insomnia fell? Why would they need it here?" I ask.

Ignis adjusts his glasses while thinking. "My best bet would be they have found lady lunafraya but even for such a thing this seems a little excessive." He tells me. I can't help but agree. I understand she has the ring but that alone shouldn't have warranted such a response. But if Luna is truly there, fighting the empire...

I hear my advisor let out a sigh. "I suppose we will be going then?" He asks. I give him a nod.

"Where are Gladiolus and Prompto?"

Ignis begins walking and I follow, "Gladiolus said he was going use the telescopes at the front to attempt so see anything we can't already. Prompto went with him." Ignis explains to me as he quickly guides me to the front of the town.

I look and see Gladiolus putting gil into the telescope, Prompto next to him.

"What's happening over there?" I ask Gladiolus as we descend the stairs.

He continues putting Gil into the machine before answering. "Hang on. The Timer ran out, but from what I can tell, someone is giving them a hell of a time." He tells me, before stepping away from the telescope. "Take a look for yourself."

I walked past him. And put my eyes up to it and my eyes quickly adjust. I can make out magiteck engines descending from the flagship but I quickly notice one of them explode in a ball of fire. I also barely make out a shape of a person appear on another engine before seemingly jumping off. A huge bolt of lightning shot from the figure into the magiteck. The Lightning arcs to 3 other engines nearby it before they exploded in balls of fire, falling towards the ground. The figure disappeared from the air and I was unable to locate him again.

I hear Gladiolus let out a low whistle. "I guess it's a Safe bet that Luna has a glave with her." I hear Prompto say.

"A powerful one at that." Ignis points out. "I could make out that Electro from here clear as day."

I feel a churning in my stomach. The number of glave there were before the attack were quite limited, and considering this one could pull off an electro without a flask, something even I can't do yet, I should at least know who in the ranks could have been that skilled. But unfortunately my mind drew a blank.

I pull back from the telescope. "Well whoever is no one can keep that up for long. We need to get going." I begin walking towards the car when I realize that no one else is moving with me. I turn back to them and see the hesitation on their faces, well except Ignis who was looking at the map.

"We really just gonna rush into this, head first without a plan of any sort?" Gladiolus asks. Prompto nods in agreement. "Yeah, I'm all for taking on the empire and getting the crystal back, but I don't think charging right into the enemy is the greatest plan of action." Prompto explains tepidly.

"Well we cant just sit here and do nothing!" I argue.

"Do calm down your highness. No one was suggesting that we do nothing." Ignis says. We all turn to him as he continues to study the map. "But if we are going to fight the empire at their fullest, then might I suggest a small detour?" He asks as he turns the map towards me to show a red circle on it with the word 'tomb' written over it.

"We don't exactly have time to go dungeon spelunking right now." Gladiolus points out.

"Well, it a good thing it's not in a dungeon. It's actually right next to the road." Ignis explains.

"Alright then. Lets go." I tell him as I once again begin running to the car, this time with the others following.

"I'm driving." I practically demand. I hear no arguments although ignis did comment. Something about not rushing despite The circumstances.

I already have the engine going before the others even begin climbing in but The second Promptos door shuts, I hit the gas. 0 to 70, with the help of Cindy's modifications, in less then 8 seconds. I push it no farther than 90, as we go through the tunnel. I hear Ignis yells in the backseat but I simply reassure him I'll be careful.

We quickly arrived at the parking lot and I immediately noticed that I could in fact see the tomb nearby. I hop out of the car and the others follow suit but not nearly with as much haste. I quickly run up to the open area and am met with a large pack of sabertusks.

"We don't have time for this." I say in annoyance.

I hear Prompto stop next to me, "yeah, Tell them that. I'm sure they'll understand your in a hurry and just leave us be." He jokes.

I summon my engine blade and warp strike towards the nearest one. I whipped the sword out of its side and it lets out a howl before I cleave its head off. I hear a growl from next to me and am forced to phase backwards out of the way of a lunging sabertusk.

I prepare to counter but Gladiolus beats me to the punch as he charges into the side of it with a shield before bashing it again. The creature gets up and retreats back. It doesn't get far as several cross bolts hit it in the side killing it.

I take note of the remaining numbers, 7. Summoning two daggers in my hands, I call out. "Ignis lets make this quick!"

Ignis runs up and stops next to me before summoning 2 of his own daggers, Lightning sparking and jumping off of them.

"Finally through charging head first at the enemy?" He asks sarcastically. I simply give him a lighthearted scoff before we both take off with near immeasurable speed.

The Particles and Lightning coming off the two of us make an X through a sabertusk and huge gaping wounds appear on it just as we appear behind the creature. I hear a picture being taken as Prompto remarks, "Now that's a money shot!"

I hear Gladiolus yell. "Prompto! Pay attention!"

Again we disappear in trails of lightning and particles quickly killing another sabertusk. One jumps at ignis but a gunshot rings out and the creature falls dead. "Don't worry big guy! I'm an expert at multitasking." Prompto says.

Ignis suddenly disappears in a flash of lightning reappearing between Prompto and a sabertusk that had lunged from behind Prompto. He stabs both daggers into its throat, killing it.

"Yes but it seems we need to work on your spacial awareness." Ignis says.

I simply chuckle. I spot my next target. I crouch down lean forward and push off my back foot with a full force warp.

I suddenly stop halfway, completely losing control of my magic. The unexpected stop before my destination causes me to trip and fall dropping my daggers. 'What was that?!' I don't spend to much time on it as I sit up and resummon my daggers.

I see them disappear from the spot on the ground ahead of me, I feel them reattached to my soul and pull them outwards... but they don't appear, they almost feel like their stuck somehow. "What?!"

I don't have time to ponder it as the sabertusk that I had previously made my target lungs on top of me. "Noct!" I hear Gladiolus yell out to me. A ball sized stone stikes it on the side of the head. It falls off of me and shakes it head from the pain. Prompto quickly helps me to my feet.

"Dude?! Whats wrong with your magic?!? My gun just vanished!" He asks panicked. I once again try to pull a weapon to me but I can't. "I don't know!"

Ignis and Gladiolus stop next to us as the remaining sabertusks begin stalking us. Ignis quickly decides the best corse of action. "We best make to the tomb. They wont follow us in!" We all begin running to it the sabertusks keeping a small distance as they waited for an opening. We make it and begin descending the stairs before we turned to see the sabertusks stopped at the edge of the stone structure.

We stand there for several seconds catching a breath. Prompto was the first to say something to break our silence. "So... What now?"

I turn and open the door to the tomb. "Well. Might as well see if this still works." I explain to them.

I see a silver shield sitting in the hands of the stone king. 'Dame. Thats a shame.' I think irritated. It may very well be the only weapon we will have to use. I put my hand on it and it immediately disappears before reappearing with my other royal arms. The five weapons all glowed circling me before disappearing. I call the shield to me and it comes forward without any difficulty.

"It'll be a bit difficult to take the empire on with a shield." Gladiolus remarks.

I hear ignis hum and turn to him. He has his hand on his chin as he thinks. "Noct. Perhaps... its best we not engage the empire." He says to me seriously. "Gladiolus is right, under these Circumstances I seriously doubt we can do any lasting bus to the Empire circumstances I seriously doubt we can do any lasting blows to the empire."

I close my eyes in thought. Luna is out there and every second we waste, they are one step closer to her. But... I turn to my friends, all of them waiting for my decision. It's then in the silence that I realize I can no longer hear the fighting in the distance.

"Alright... we won't be fighting them today. But I still think we should at least go to see what's happened. Try to find Luna if she is not already caught." I tell them.

Gladiolus raises an eyebrow. "Wow, a plan. Cause you know, those never have problems." He says sarcastically.

I roll my eyes. "Come on. I'll take care of the sabertusks."

 _ **Mirrored fate**_

' _Why do you bother?'_

I lay on the ground in pain as my focus comes and goes. I'm Barely able to maintain consciousness. That woman, Areana, really didn't waste time when my powers stopped working.

' _You could squash all of them like insects.'_

"Yes sir... no sir. She isn't here." I hear her speaking. I move my arms in an attempt to push myself up but they feel so heavy. "We don't need to. He had the ring on him." She says.

' _You've done it before. Surely you remember how.'_

"I don't understand why she so import-... understood sir. I'll continue the search." She said. She looked at me as I tried to push myself up.

' _But alas you insist on this foolishness. Ether way, your will shall waver soon.'_

She walks over to me looking down at me. "Nighty night sweet prince." She says before kicking me in the head sending me into blackness.

' _And I will be waiting.'_


End file.
